Fahrettin Altay (12 January 1880 – 25 October 1974) was a
Turkish military officer. His surname "Altay" (''Red horse/colt'') was given to him by
Atatürk. The Turkish tank
Altay is named in honor of him.
Biography
Fahrettin Altay was born to Lieutenant Colonel İsmail Bey, son of Hacı Ahmet Efendi from
İzmir
İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...
and Hayriye Hanım, the daughter of Lieutenant Colonel İbrahim Bey in
Shkodër
Shkodër ( , ; sq-definite, Shkodra; historically known as Scodra or Scutari) is the List of cities and towns in Albania, fifth-most-populous city of Albania and the seat of Shkodër County and Shkodër Municipality. Shkodër has been List of o ...
in
Scutari Vilayet (now
Albania
Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...
). His father rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel from being a captain at his arrival, by gaining fame in the wars he fought against
Malësors and
Montenegrins
Montenegrins (, or ) are a South Slavic ethnic group that share a common ancestry, culture, history, and language, identified with the country of Montenegro.
Montenegrins are mostly Orthodox Christians; however, the population also includes ...
in the Shkodër region. He traces his roots to İzmir and states that his great-grandfather was Ömer Ağa the son of the "
Urlalı" and states that his parents were married in
Monastir. He married with Münime Hanım, the daughter of Tahir Paşa from the Bibezik family of
Podgorica
Podgorica ( cnr-Cyrl, Подгорица; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Montenegro, largest city of Montenegro. The city is just north of Lake Skadar and close to coastal destinations on the Adriatic Sea. Histor ...
in 1912 in
Istanbul
Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
. They were married for 62 years and had two children and two grandchildren. He graduated from the
Ottoman Military College in Istanbul.
When
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
started, he was the 3rd Corps Chief of Staff. He met future President of Turkey
Mustafa Kemal while serving on the
Dardanelles Front. In 1915, he was appointed Deputy Undersecretary of the Ministry of War and was promoted to the rank of Miralay in the same year. Shortly after serving in the
Romanian Front, he was sent as commander of the
Palestinian Front. After the defeat in Palestine, the 12th Corps headquarters was moved to the city of
Konya where he served as 12th Corps commander to the end of the war.
During the
Turkish War of Independence
, strength1 = May 1919: 35,000November 1920: 86,000Turkish General Staff, ''Türk İstiklal Harbinde Batı Cephesi'', Edition II, Part 2, Ankara 1999, p. 225August 1922: 271,000Celâl Erikan, Rıdvan Akın: ''Kurtuluş Savaşı tarih ...
, Altay served as commander of the V. Cavalry Corps. Perhaps his most famous exploit during his leadership of the V. Cavalry Corps was the famous
Battle of Dumlupınar, where the V. Cavalry Corps passed behind the Greek lines at the beginning of the battle. His cavalry cut Greek supply and communication. They raised havoc among the retreating Greek troops and also captured General
Nikolaos Trikoupis, CO of Greek forces in Anatolia. In the
Great Smyrna Offensive, V Cavalry Corps was one of the offensive vanguards of the Turkish Army.
According to ''Altay Spor Tarihi'' ("The History of Altay Sports Club"), in 1966 when Fahrettin Altay visited the
Altay Sports Club at
İzmir
İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...
, he explained to Erdoğan Tözge how his surname was given. According to Erdoğan Tözge, he presented a gold
fountain pen to Fahrettin Altay and asked him how he chose Altay as his surname. Fahrettin Altay replied, ''When we visited Izmir with
Gazi Mustafa Kemal Pasha during the years of armistice, the Altay club played football against a mixed team consisting of Royal Navy personnel. We watched the game together. Altay club played very well and when they won against the British, Gazi Mustafa Kemal Pasha was affected, honored, and expressed his appreciation. After a long time had passed and Gazi Mustafa Kemal Pasha sent me to
Tabriz
Tabriz (; ) is a city in the Central District (Tabriz County), Central District of Tabriz County, in the East Azerbaijan province, East Azerbaijan province of northwestern Iran. It serves as capital of the province, the county, and the distric ...
to settle a border dispute with Iran. During my staying at Tabriz, the
Surname Law was adopted in the
Grand National Assembly, and the Assembly gave the name Atatürk to Gazi Mustafa Kemal Pasha unanimously. All the country congratulated him because of his new surname. I also sent a telegraph and celebrated.''
[Ç. Esen Kaftan, Aydın Sevgel, Günay Şimşek, Mehmet Ali Hesertürk, ''Altay Spor Tarihi'', Altay Spor Kulübü, c. 1975. ] Atatürk's response that he received the next day, was:
Afterwards, Fahrettin said, "My eyes were full with tears when I received the telegram. Atatürk deemed me worthy of surname Altay for the memory of the football match of Altay that we had watched together and he had been affected."
In 1933-35 Altay was chosen by Afghanistan and Iran to demarcate the middle section of
their common boundary.
He retired from the army in 1945. Between 1946 and 1950 he served as a deputy for the
CHP from
Burdur. After 1946 he retired from political life.
[ In the early 1950s he was one of the contributors of the history magazine '' Tarih Dünyası''. He died in ]Istanbul
Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
in 1974.
See also
*
* List of commanders of the First Army of Turkey
* Altay S.K.
Sources
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Altay, Fahrettin
1880 births
1974 deaths
People from Shkodër
People from Scutari vilayet
Republican People's Party (Turkey) politicians
Deputies of Mersin
Deputies of İzmir
Deputies of Burdur
Ottoman Army officers
Turkish Army generals
Commanders of the First Army of Turkey
Ottoman military personnel of the Balkan Wars
Ottoman military personnel of World War I
Turkish military personnel of the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922)
Ottoman Military Academy alumni
Ottoman Military College alumni
Recipients of the Medal of Independence with Red-Green Ribbon (Turkey)
Burials at Turkish State Cemetery
Commanders of the Second Army of Turkey